In the manufacturing industry, such as the automotive industry, workpieces, such as sheet metal panels, are often gauged and nested in idle stations between machining operations, such as stamping operations in the case of sheet metal panels. The sheet metal panels are often supported by a plurality of nylon templates, which are attached to and secured in position by holder brackets. The holder brackets are typically spaced from one another and are connected to and supported by a table or support structure. The nylon templates have predetermined configurations such that when placed in the holder brackets, the nylon templates may support the sheet metal panel when the sheet metal panel is set on top of the nylon templates. For instance, the nylon templates may assume “I,” “H,” and/or “T” shaped configurations to support the sheet metal panel in strategic locations such that when a workpiece handling device, such as vacuum cups, engage the sheet metal panel, the sheet metal panel does not dent or deform in response to the forces applied by the vacuum cups to the sheet metal panel.
In order to adjust to various shapes of sheet metal panels, such as in the case of different models of automobiles, different shapes of nylon templates may be created for supporting the different models or shapes of the sheet metal panels. The holder brackets are designed to releasably engage the nylon templates so that different-shaped nylon templates can be interchanged upon manufacturing different models of the sheet metal panels. The holder brackets may receive the nylon templates in a slotted block configuration, wherein removable pins are inserted through aligned apertures in the holder bracket and the nylon template. Thus, upon the removal and insertion of the pins, the nylon templates may be easily connected to and removed from the holder brackets.
As previously noted, different nylon templates having different configurations must be utilized for different-shaped sheet metal panels. Therefore, a manufacturing facility may utilize many different nylon templates depending on the number of different sheet metal panels that the facility may be producing. When the nylon templates are not being utilized by not being connected to the holder brackets, the nylon templates must be stored within the production facility. Due to the bulkiness and unusual shapes of the nylon templates, there is no simple and organized manner in which to store the nylon templates. Many of the nylon templates are commonly stored in large bins, wherein the nylon templates are simply piled on top of one another in an unorganized fashion. This leads to an unsightly and inefficient method of storing the nylon templates, which may lead to damaging the nylon templates while also requiring additional time to find the appropriate nylon templates when exchanging the nylon templates for different sheet metal panel configurations. In addition, the removeable pins in the holder brackets are often removed and misplaced, thereby preventing the nylon templates from being locked into the holder brackets.
It would be desirable to create an apparatus for supporting a sheet metal panel that provided a simple and accurate means in which to support a sheet metal panel while also providing an efficient and orderly manner in which to store the apparatus when not in use.